The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1887-11-18
MANKATo FnFE PREss.
FRIDAY. NOVEMBER 10 1857
THE DUTY OF PARENTS.
Or. TALMAeE's DISCOURSE At THE
TABERNACLE.

diligence as by Tyranny-Ths Proper
Treatment OF the Young.
BROOKLYN, Nov. l3-The weekly pubhca-
ton Of DIR. Talmage's sermons h beyond par
allel. Besides the English speaking nations,
including Australia and New Zealand, the
sermons are regularly translated into the
languages Of Germany, France, Italy, Den
mark, Norway, Russia and India The gen
tlemen having In charge the publication Of
these sermons inform Us that in this country
every week 1S,000 900 copies Of the entire
sermon are printed, and about 400, 700 In
other lands, making over II, O00, 900 per week.
A similar arrangement IL now being made
for the publication Of DR.. Talmages Friday
evening talks
The subject Of the sermon today was ''Pa,
rental Blunders," and the taxi was Samuel
Nv, Is: "He fell from OF the seat backward
by the side Of the gate, and his neck brake
and he died; for he was an old man, and
heavy" DIR. Talmage said:
This Is the end Of long story Of parental
neglect. Judge Eli was q good man, but b
let his two boys, Hophni and Phinehas, do a
they pleased, and through over indulgence
they went to ruin. The blind old Judge
96 years Of age, Is seated at the gate waiting
| for the news of an important battle In which
his two sons were at the front. An expires
Is coming with tidings from the battle. Thii
blind nonagenarian puts his hand behind hi
ear, and listens and cries: "What meanetl
the noise of this tumultF' An excited mes
senger, all out Of breath with the speed, saiG
to him: "Our army Is defeated. The sacred
chest, called the ark, Is captured, and you
1 A. n n 4. Al
father tainted and expired The domestic
tragedy in which these two sons were thu
tragedians had finished its fifth and last act
''Hs fell from of the seat backward by tn,
side of the gate, and his neck brake, and h,
died: for he was an old man, and heavy
Eli had made an awful mistake in regarC
to his children. The Bible distinctly says
"His sons made themselves vile and he re
strained them not" Oh, the ten THOUSAND
mistakes in rearing children, mistakes O
parents, mistakes of teachers In day schoo
and Sabbath classes, mistakes which we El
make. VIII it not be useful to consider
| them2
This country is going to be conquered by
great army, compared with which that O
Baldwin the First, and Xerxes, and Alex
ander, and Grant, and Lee, all put together
were In numbers insignificant. They vii
capture all our pulpits, storehouses, factorie
and halls Of legislation, all our shipping, al
our wealth, and all our honors. They vii
take possession Of all authority, from tn
United States presidency down to the hum
blest constabulary-of everything between
the Atlantic and Pacific oceans They are OF
the march now, and they halt neither day
nor night. They viii soon be here, and al
the present active population Of this countr,
must surrender and give way. I refer to tn
great army of children. Whether they shall
take possession of everything for good or To-
bad, depends upon the style Of preparation
through which they pass ON their way from
cradle to throne. Cicero acknowledges b
kept in his desk collection Of prefaces fol
books, which prefaces he could at any tim
attach to anything he wanted to publish fol
himself or others; and parents and teach
ers have all prepared the preface Of every
young life under their charge, and no
only the preface, but the appendix
whether the volume be a poem or 1
farce. Families and schools, and legislature
are in our day busily engaged in discussing
what is the best mode Of educating children
Before this question almost every othel
dwindles into insignificance, while dependen
upon its proper solution is the welfare O
governments and ages eternal MacaulaJ
tells of the war which Frederick II mad,
against Queen Maria Theresa. And on,
day she appeared before the august diet
wearing mourning for her father, and helC
up in her arms before them her child, tn,
archduke. This so wrought upon the officer
and deputies of the people that with hal
drawn swords they broke forth In the wal
cry: "Let US die for our queen, Marii
Theresa So, this morning, realizing tina
the boy of today is to be the ruler Of tn,
future, the popular sovereign, hold hin
before the American people to arouse thei
enthusiasm in has behalf, and to evoke thei
oath for his defense, his education and hi
sublime destiny.
If parent, you will remember when 20,
were aroused to these great responsibilities
and when you found that you had not don
all required after you had admired the tin,
hands, and the glossy hair, and the brigh
eyes that lay in the cradle. You suddenl,
remembered that that hand would yet b
raised to bless the world with its benediction
or to smite it with a curse, In Ariosto'
great poem there is a character called Rug
giero, who has a shield of insufferabl
splendor, but it is kept yelled, save on certain
occasions, and when uncovered it startlet
and overwhelmed its beholder, who befor
had no suspicion of its brightness. My hop
today is to uncover the destiny Of your chill
or student, about which you may have no es
pecial appreciation, and fash upon you tn
splendoTs of its immortal nature Behold tn
shield and the sword Of its coming conflict
] propose in this discourse to set fort
what l consider to be some Of the errors pre-
valent in the training Of children.
First: remark that many err in too grea
severity OF too great lenienry of family gov
eminent. Between parental tyranny ant
ruinous laxativeness Of discipline there Is
medium. Sometimes the father errs on on
side, and the mother on the other side. Goot
family government is all important. Aparch,
and misrule in the domestic circle is the fore
| runner of anarchy and misrule in the state
What a repulsive spectacle is home withou
order or discipline, diSobedience and impu
derce, and anger and falsehood lifting thei
hoIrid front in the place which should b
,onsecrated to all that Is holy and peaceful
and beautiful In the attempt to avoid al
this. and bring the children under prope
| l',u3 and regulations, parents have sometime
cr"-ied themselves with great rigor. Johl
| Toward, who was merciful to the prisons ant
|
his children. John Milton knew everything
but how to train his family. Severe and I'm
reasonable was he In his carriage towarC
them. He made them read to him in four O
five Languages, BUT would not allow them Il
learn any Of them, for he said that on
tongue was enough for a woman. Thei
reading was mechanical drudgery, when,
they understood the languages they read, tn
| 80 lob hoxy
luxury. No wonder his children de
and hoped for his death. In all age
there has been need Of q society for proven
ton of cruelty to children, When Barbar,
was put to death by her father because sh
had countermanded his order, and had thre'
windows put in a room instead of two, thi
cruel parent was type Of many who hav,
acted the Nero and the Robespierre In tn,
home circle. The heart sickens at what yoT
sometimes see, even In families that pretent
to be Christian-perpetual scolding, and
hair pulling, and ear boxing, and humping
and stamping, and fault finding, and teasing
until the children are vexed beyond bounds
and growl in the sleeve, and pout, and rebel
and vow within themselves that In after dayl
they win retaliate for the cruelties practiced
Many home has become as full of dispute
as was the home Of John O'Groat, who built
his house at the most northerly point In
Great Britain, And tradition says that the
house had eight windows, and eight doors
and table Of eight sides, because he had
eight children, and the only way to keeT
them out Of bitter quarri was to have . sspa.
rate appointment for each one Of them.
That child's nature Is too delicate to be
worked upon By sledge hammer, and gouge,
and pile driver. Such flerce flashing, instead
Of breaking the high mettle 70 bit and trace,
win make it dash OF the more uncontrollat
bic. Many seem to think that children ara
fax-not fit for use till they have been hetch.
eled and swingled. Some one talking to q
child said, 81 wonder what makes that tree